I think the hardest to replace has been Johnny Collins. He was great to play with. You could always rely on him to be available for a short pass, allowing you time to clear a ball. He would never give the ball away.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I'm being compared to the impossible. I never saw Mays, Aaron or Clemente play. What about the people I face every day? Tim Raines is the best? Mattingly is the best? Why not compare me to my peers?
There are certain people in our business that you don't replace - Bob Knight, Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzyewski, and you don't replace John Wooden, either.
I played with Willie Mays and against Hank Aaron. They were tremendous players, but they were no Josh Gibson.
We started playing the Baltimore Colts early, and I was still very impressed with Johnny Unitas, who just passed away recently. I thought he was one of the best quarterbacks at the time when I was very young, he was in his prime.
It's definitely hard when you're putting in the work and the guy who's starting isn't, especially if he's overhyped or you're not winning. I can't imagine how hard it would be to be that guy's backup.
Carl Yastrzemski was the best all-around player. He could run, throw and hit. He had the ability to play a number of different positions. He signed as a shortstop. He could play the outfield, of course, and third base and first, too. He was a tremendous athlete. Mickey Mantle was unbelievable, too.
I just don't think you pass on a great quarterback if you have the opportunity. If need be, you can trade it away.
We've been around long enough and have been to enough award shows to know that it is easy to lose to Phil Collins at any time.
You should have seen Willie Wells play shortstop: as good as Ozzie Smith and a better hitter. How I wish people could have seen Ray Dandridge play third base, as good as Brooks Robinson and Craig Nettles and all of those. He was bowlegged; a train might go through there, but not a baseball.
Drew McFedries was the hardest hitter I've ever been around. A big, strong, athletic guy with power. He didn't have to hit you with a hard shot or load up - even the little short shots could hurt you.